Nolds



(No Model.)

O. O. REYNOLDS.

Key Board Attachment for Musical Instruments.

No. 231,849. Patented Aug. 31,1880.

ATTORNEYS.

MPETERa PHOTO LITHOGRAPHER WASHINGTON. D c,

I UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

HIMSELF AND \VILLIAM G.

YOUNG, OF SAME PLACE.

KEY-BOARD ATTACHMENT FOR MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 231,849,

dated August 31, 1880.

Application filed June 11, 1880. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that 1, CHRISTOPHER O. REY- NOLDS, of Kelseyville, in thecounty of Lake and State of California, have invented a new and ImprovedKey-Board Attachment for Musical Instruments. of which the following isa specification.

The object of my invention is to provide a new and improved attachmentfor the keyboards of musical instruments which is simple in constructionand accurate and rapid in operation.

The invention consists in a series of levers pivoted adjacent to eachother in such a mannor that they can be acted upon by a moving sheetwhich has the notes cut out or raised and passes between twofeed-rollers, which draw it under the lower ends of the abovementionedlevers, having a cord or wire attached to the upper ends, the said cordsor wires passing over or through suitable bridges and being attached tothe upper ends of a series of fingers resting on the keys of theinstrument. By means of a crank the feed-rollers are rotated, thusmoving the music-sheet as is necessary, and at the same time a rollerarranged adjacent to and parallel with the row of fingers is rotated insuch a manner as to assist in depressing the fingers, thereby relievingthe music-sheet from undue strain.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure l is a plan view of my improvedkey-board attachment for musical instruments. Fig. 2 is a frontelevation of the same. Fig. 3 is' a crosssectional elevation of the sameon the line a: as, Fig. 1. Fig. 4: is a cross-sectional elevation andview of the under side of the rear bridge. Fig. 5 is a cross-sectionalelevation and plan of the front bridge.

40 Similar letters of reference indicate corresponding parts.

A series of levers, A A, rounded or curved at the lower ends, arepivoted in a bar, 0, which is provided with a recess or cut for eachlever. In the case shown the bar O is pro vided with a longitudinalgroove, B, in the side, and a rod, 1), in said groove passes through allthe levers A A, thus pivoting or hinging them in said bar; but in placeof this the levers may be pivoted in any other desired or suitablemanner. The said levers should be pivoted in such a manner that thefulcrum is below the center. The lower ends of the levers A touch theuppersurface of the musicrack E, hinged or pivoted in such a manner thatit can be drawn out, as shown in Fig. 1, to receive the notes, and canthen be pushed back to its place, as shown in Fig. 3, whereby thenote-sheet F is held between the feed-roller G, pivoted on the rack andforming the edge of the same, and the feed-roller H, mounted on a shaft,I, which is actuated by means of a worm-wheel, a, rotated bya worm, b,on a shaft, J, provided with a crank, K.

The feed-rollers Gr and H are covered with some flexible material, so asnot to injure the notes and move the note-sheet forward regularly anduniformly, and are provided with spur-wheels (Z (Z, which engage witheach other, so that the roller Gr rotates with the roller H.

Cords or wires L L are attached to the upper ends of the levers A, passthrough or over the front bridge, M, and through or under the rearbridge, N, and are then attached to the upper ends of a series offingers, O O, resting on the keys 1? P of the musical instrument.

The fingers O 0 pa ss through and are guided in a bar, Y, attached tothe inner side of the rear wall of my improved attachment, and notchedaccording to the position and size of the keys, which vary in theseveral kinds of instruments made.

The front bridge, h'I, consists of a rail, of wood, metal, or othersuitable material, provided with a series of grooves, f, having agreater or less curvature, according to the angle the cord or wire formsat the bridge.

The rear bridge, N, consists of a rail provided with vertical grooves g011 the back and a continuation, h, of said groove on the lower 0 side,which continuation is curved at the ends to suit the inclination of thecords or wires.

A roller, Q, which may be plain or covered with rubber, leather,or otherlike suitable material, is pivoted parallel to and in contact with therows of fingers O O. A pulley, R, is mounted on the end of said rollerQ, and is connected, by means of a belt, S, with the pulley T on theshaft I in such a manner as to cause it to rotate toward the rear of theat- I00 tachment, as indicated by the arrow a,I ig.3. Thewithin-described attachment is secured above the key-board by means offelted or cushioned blocks V, which are pressed against the key-boardframe by means of screws W, or

the attachment maybe secured above the keyboard in any other suitablemanner.

The operation is as follows: The rack E is drawn out, the note-sheet Fis placed on the same, and the rack is then closed, so that thenote-sheet is between the feed-rollers G and H. The crank K is thenturned from left to right, causing the feed-rollers to rotate in thedirection of their arrows, whereby the notesheet moves in the directionof the arrowb. The projections i of the note-sheet F come in contactwith the lower end of the lever A, and push it along, whereby theupper-end of said lever moves in the direction of the arrow (1, drawingthe cordor wire L in the same direction; but if the cord moves in theabove direction the finger O, to which it is attached, willdescend, asindicated by the arrow 0, and consequently depresses the key I, therebyproducing the desired sound. The key remains depressed as long as thelever Ais held by the ,projection t of the note-sheet F, andconsequently the projections must be arranged according to the timedesired in regard to position and size.

The shaft or roller Q, is used to depress the fingersby its action onthe fingers as soon as the cords L are drawn taut, or to assist indepressing said fingers, thereby relieving the projections of thenote-sheets from an undue strain. The-roller Q is driven directly fromthe crank, independently of the note-sheet, and is intended to do thegreater part of the depressing of the keys orfingers.

The'reaction of the keys of the instrument isstron g enough to raise thefingers O as soon as thecords L are released. Afinger, O, cord L, andlever A are arranged for each key, and the'rows of projections on thenote-sheet F must be arranged accordingly.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire tosecure by Letters Patent, is-

1. A key-board attachment for musical instruments, made substantially asherein shown and described, and consisting of a series of pivoted leversacted upon by the note-sheet and connected by strings or wires with acorresponding series of fingers resting upon the keys and acted upon bya friction-roller rotated at the same time with the feed-roller, betweenwhich the note-sheet is held, whereby the keys are depressed by theaction of the friction-rollerand of the projections of the notesheet onthe pivoted levers connected with the fingers.

2. In a key-board attachment for musical instruments, theoombinatiom'with the fingers O O, of the roller Q, arranged to operatesubstantially as herein shown and described, and for the purpose setforth.

3. In a key-board attachment for musical instruments, the combination,with the hinged or pivoted rack E, of the feed-rollers G and H,spur-wheels d d, and shaft I, substantially as herein shown anddescribed, and for the purpose set forth.

4. In a key-board attachment for musical instruments, the combination,with the shaft vI, of the feed-rollers Gr and H, the pulleys R and T,belt S, and roller Q, substantially as herein shown and described, andfor the purpose set forth.

5. In a key-board attachment for musical instruments, the combination,with the strings L, of the levers A, fingers O, and bridges M and N,substantially as herein shown and described, and for the purpose setforth.

6. In a key-board attachment for musical instruments, the bridge N,constructed, substantially as herein shown and described, with avertical groove, g, on the rear side and a horizontal groove, 71, on thelower side, as set forth.

CHRISTOPHER O. REYNOLDS.

Witnesses:

J. B. J AMISON, J. W. ANNETT.

